George Soros and His Investment and Philanthropic Ventures

George Soros, the renowned hedge fund manager cum billionaire and philanthropist, is known for his endless fights and activism around the world that put forward the concept called “open societies.” In many ways, he is considered to be a role model for people with his humanitarian works and as a self-made billionaire with no dirty or lobbied business. Soros is the founder of Soros Fund Management LLC with a net fortune of $25.2 Billion, and interestingly, he made charitable contributions worth $13 billion in the last three decades. Soros is anxious about the divisive policies various political leaders and, he opposes it in full fledge. This is the reason, he opposed President Donald Trump in 2016 Presidential election, and Soros also feels that many of the policies by Trump are unclear or not addressing the reality.

Soros born in the family of a non-practicing Jews in Hungary in 1930 and escaped the Holocaust during the Second World War. After the war, he and his family moved to England and continued his education by enrolling at London School of Economics. During the period, George Soros got the chance to read the books of Viennese philosopher Karl Popper, and through the works, he came to know about the concept of open societies. The concept has played a significant role in his activism and fights in the later part of his life, and Soros considers Popper as his “spiritual mentor.” An open society is framed on the concept of the welfare of all humankind, and it put forwards universal principles. Read this story about George at Politico.com.

The open societies are progressive and looking for nation or culture interests over the self-interest – contrary to closed societies. It also gives freedom to criticize the institutions and correct it through discussions, protests, action plans, etc. After completing the graduation, Soros started working with London-based brokerage firm called Singer and Friedlander. Later, he moved to New York and began working as a stock broker at the Wall Street. Soros also worked as an investment manager at Arnhold and S. Bleichroeder Inc., an investment bank. In the year 1969, he established Double Eagle Fund for the investment bank Bleichroeder with a capital of $4 million.

After four years, Soros set up his own hedge fund called Soros Fund Management. He made the firm grew exponentially in the market, and its value grew more than $1 billion by the year 1985. From 1979, Soros started focusing on his philanthropic activities and contributions and founded many open society foundations around the world based on the concepts of Popper. While his wealth surged over the years, his contributions too got a steep increase, and by the year 1993, Soros started spending at least $300 million a year for various philanthropic activities. Today, his open society foundations have the presence in at least 70 countries around the world. Read his profile at Business Insider.